How I tackled a notoriously recurring fire hazard as Collector Dhenkanal.
Bhuban village in the Dhenkanal district in Odisha was declared as a Notified Area Council (NAC) way back in 1972. Yet, in 1987, when I joined as the Collector, Dhenkanal, it was still a large village de facto. My joining as Collector got delayed due a large outbreak of fire in there. It may surprise the readers but that is what actually happened.
Bhuban was rather notorious for the recurring fire incidents, nearly every summer. A dry spell, a strong summer, thatched roofs and some careless spark here or there --- was a good recipe for a largish fire incident. The routine dousing of the fire with the help of the fire brigade and some local efforts will happen. The revenue machinery will get activated in damage assessment and distribution of some emergent relief, followed of course, by a larger relief package that the state government will announce. The cycle would thus go on …… quite periodically.
But why should this delay my joining as Collector, Dhenkanal? Well, it so happened that a fire did break out in Bhuban in April 1987. The then Collector, Mr Ardhendu Sarangi, an efficient and upright officer had tackled the incident quite well. But media being media, a prominent Odiya newspaper portrayed as if he was being transferred for not handling the incident well. This was factually wrong as my posting order had come out few days before the event took place. Understandably, Mr Sarangi was incensed at the insinuation and had demanded that his transfer must be deferred and his detractors should not be allowed to get away with the mischievous reporting.
Oblivious of this, I was happily planning to hand over my charge as the Chief Executive of Odisha’s Renewable Energy Development Agency (OREDA) after finishing some last minute file-work, and proceed to Dhenkanal by noon. The district headquarter was some couple of hours away from Bhubaneshwar. My staff was quite happy about my new posting and were optimistic about some good work to be done there in the renewable energy sector. It did not quite happen that way though, one’s priorities completely change after joining a district as the Collector.
As I was about to complete my pending files and ask for the handing over report for signature, the phone rang. The Secretary of the personnel department i.e the General Administration Department (Also deridingly called the God Almighty Department – GAD), Mr Mahesh Modi was on the line. “How are you, Agnihotri?” he asked. “Functus officio?”
“Almost, Sir” I replied. “I was just finishing a file or two work, will sign the ‘handing over’ report and the leave for Dhenkanal.”
“Good. Please don’t sign the papers yet. That’s the reason I called you.”
I fell from the sky. “But why Sir?” Is the posting order getting cancelled?”.
“No, no. Not cancelled. We are keeping it in abeyance for a month or two. I am sending you the formal instruction to not hand over the charge. Waise bhi, your regular successor has not been posted so far.” He tried to sound reassuring.
“That’s not fair, Sir.” I protested. “This is very embarrassing, I have had my farewell dinner just yesterday night. I will be a laughing stock.”
“Nothing like that will happen. People understand. You can always give a spin that you were needed to stay back for some important assignment. Renewable energy after all is a new subject and you are the expert!” I could sense both a command in his voice and some humour as well.
I heaved a deep sigh! My PA looked at me and so did the Executive Engineer whom I was to hand over the charge. “I am staying back for the time being” I said. The EE gave a very broad smile and said “Bhala hela, Sir. Let a regular successor come and join.” The news did spread like a wild fire. Tasleem my driver said with a broad grin “Bhagwan sab achchha hee karte hain. Aadhe raaste se bulaa lete to kyaa hotaa? He was right. What if I were called back half way through my journey? I had heard a horror story of an officer being intercepted half way through his journey to his new place of posting at the Sambalpur Circuit House, and asked to report to the State Headquarter i.e. Bhubaneshwar in the GA Department. Little did I imagine that some years later, as the Secretary GA Department, I will be doing exactly this to another younger officer!
To cut a long story short, I soon got over the sudden jolt and joined the district after 3 months, quite uneventfully but firmly shunning another ‘farewell dinner’.
When I inquired about the fires in Bhuban, what I heard was intriguing. It had become a common occurrence nearly every year or two. People were quite fatalistic about it. Some blamed the fire to congestion and thatched roofs. Some voices even hinted that the fire was triggered to get ‘relief’ – both the gratuitous relief and the post hazard compensation. Amazing anecdotes about affected people preferring to play cards below a tree rather than helping the firemen were also narrated.
I refrained from pre-judging the issue but made it clear that we must take precautionary measures. Fire brigade must carry out a drill to access different streets, the revenue and the NAC machinery should assign different neighborhoods to specific officers, the wireless network needs to remain activated and senior officers need to be alerted immediately if fire breaks out anywhere, and so on. I also fixed a pre-summer date to review the preparations.
“This year may pass off peacefully.” My experienced emergency officer declared. His logic was that we had an incident just the previous year and the administrative machinery had handled it well. So, there is likely to be a lull this time. He was not wide off the mark. A fire did indeed break out the early summer next year, but was quickly brought under control. The fire brigade acted swiftly this time. The sub-collector and other officers reached the place quite promptly to assess the damage, if any. The emergency officer was quite upbeat that the things were under control. I too did feel relieved and decided to compliment the Sub collector Kamakhya Nagar in a review meeting the next week in Angul.
But as the classic proverb goes "Man proposes, God disposes." As we were expressing a sense of satisfaction in the review meeting about the quick control over the fire, news came through the police wireless network that a fire has broken out in Bhuban again and it is quite a large fire this time. The fire brigade is reaching the spot. But the damage could be extensive.
There was not much time to be lost. The sub collector was with me in the review meeting and so were other district officers. I decided to visit the NAC myself. It would be a good 3 hours before we could reach the place. As a matter of prudence therefore, we had light lunch before leaving Angul. Shri Bhattacharya, our Deputy Director in the Administrative Training Academy always used to tell us “Whenever you are rushing for any law and order or emergency situation, don’t rush empty stomach. Remember, the best of breakfast can be polished off within ten minutes. Then you can stay hungry for next 12 hours if necessary.”
When we reached Bhuban, it was early afternoon. People do come to know quickly if higher officials are visiting. As usual, there was bit of a crowd at one end of a street where one could see some telltale signs of fire having been extinguished. While I was asking a few villagers about the incident, one person burst out in emotional anger and started pointing about damage that has happened, the need for relief and about the callousness of the government.
That was somewhat unusual. My past experience with the flood emergencies in Jajpur had taught me that such ‘vocal’ outbursts usually come from the ‘haves’ who also want to show their importance. I asked as to who the person was. There was an awkward silence. Even he fumbled when Sattar, my driver said in a low tone that this person was an employee of the NAC. I looked at the Executive officer questioningly who nodded meekly in affirmation. I quickly seized the opportunity and asked aggressively as to what was this person doing here waiting to complain loudly instead of doing his relief duty. That put him on the defensive. “Are your other colleagues not attending to the relief work?” I asked sternly. He started to wilt and stammer. I could see smiles on the faces of the onlookers. “Go, attend to the relief duty inside the bastee (locality) immediately. Otherwise, I am signing your suspension order right here before I leave.” This worked. Later I came to know that this person was very cantankerous and notorious in his bastee!
I went straight to the place where the fire had started. I was young and used to walk very fast (my students at IIT crib about it even now, I am past 70, when they have to keep pace with me while walking with me and discussing their research!). Additionally, my not caring about the soot and the dust, talking to the elderly ladies (deliberately) and young children, apart from menfolk had its impact. The children are usually very candid. They tell you why the fire tender could not reach a particular area, show you the encroachments that obstructed its movement, even blurt out from a distant background as to how the fire usually breaks out in a particular locality repeatedly. It seemed that the fire brigade personnel were told last week not to be very complacent just because they had extinguished a fire very quickly. “You will have to come back quite soon.” Was a prescient warning. I kept absorbing all these signals.
Having walked around for about an hour, we decided to sit down somewhere.
“Should I ask the neighbourhood elders (Sahi purakha) to assemble? Sir can have some tea and snacks in the meantime.” The revenue officer suggested. That was welcome indeed. I deliberately chose to sit under a large neem tree with durries spread around for people to sit and converse.
The elders gathered along with onlookers and urchins. I was not in any placatory mood, but was generous. “I am recommending 7 days gratuitous relief to the Government.” I said. “But I now understand as to why the fire happens here so frequently. Before long, we will make sure that the fire tender goes through each street followed by a bulldozer and wherever it cannot negotiate a street, the encroachments will be removed and the cost will be recovered from the house owner.” I could notice a sense of shock in the crowd.
“Besides, the relief will first be distributed to houses where the fire ended and gradually to the households where it originated. This will incentivize people to make efforts to end the fire in their neighbourhood quickly. Houses where there are very young children and widows will of course be covered first in every pada.
Also remember, this is a NAC not a village any more. All shops that have thatched roofs will be given a notice to convert their roofs to tiles, failing which the NAC will do this and recover the cost from the shop owner. The Act allows us to do this.”
This stern, firm, yet sympathetic approach was new to them all. The ‘suspension order’ threat to the cantankerous NAC employee has had its effect. A general conversation followed. I allowed everybody to let their steam off and declared in the end, “Okay, we are leaving now. But I will be back next week the same day to see that my instructions have been carried out.” I purposefully looked at the Executive Officer and said, “Make sure that the cantankerous fellow does his duty well instead of doing toutary (a common term used in Odisha – originating from the term ‘tout’ but firmly entrenched in the Odiya vocabulary!).”
I did keep my promise. Went to the village next week. Visited the ‘sanctum sanctorium’ where the fire had originated. This time they saw a Collector with a very human approach.
The sub-collector Kamakhyanagar was quite happy. “The fire won’t happen very soon.” he said grinning from ear to ear.
I did not hear of any major fire in Bhuban till 2007 when I left Odisha for my deputation with the central government. Next major fire happened in Bhuban I believe in 2018 – after 30 years.
Not a bad gap I must say!